A Sportscape's Silicon Silk
Let us consider each vector of digital representation at the modern sports space as a thread of what I have termed the silicon silk. A quick list of these threads offers the following:
- official score heading from scorer's table to a central database
- score is then syndicated to various web sites in real time
- surveillance of players by television
- surveillance of spectators by television
- surveillance of spectators by closed-circuit cameras (Bale)
- game replays shown on Jumbotron
- spectators shown on Jumbotron
- television camera feeds sent to truck
- video truck to satellite dish
- radio coverage
- bar code scan for tickets at front gate
- ticket info sent to ERP system
- cell phone calls out of stadium enclosure
- cell phone calls into stadium enclosure
- wireless ordering of food/concessions from spectator seats
- wireless access to real-time in-game stats
- aerial surveillance photos in football
- scorer's computer to the Jumbotron and smaller arena scoreboards
- scores from other arenas on in-house scoreboards
- technologies to produce virtual graphics like the 1st-and-10 line in football
- a referee's use of instant replay during game
- speed radar gun in baseball
- RFID chips to measure offsides in soccer
- RFID chips to measure race times in marathons and other road races
- GPS technology attached to golf carts
We cannot forget other affiliated threads of silk, which vector away from the chrysalis only to branch back and return again. These include videogames, fantasy sports, gambling markets, scouting videos and more. And of course there are others, some of which I am missing, and some of which haven't been realized at this point.
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